Background: The socioeconomic status (SES) gradient in hospital and emergency room utilization among adults with type 2 diabetes (T2DM) is partially driven by cost-related non-adherence.
Objective: To test the impact of the Diabetes Health Plan (DHP), a diabetes-specific health plan incorporating value-based insurance design principles on healthcare utilization among low-income adults with T2DM.
Design: To examine the impact of the DHP on healthcare utilization, we employed a difference-in-differences (DID) study design with a propensity-matched comparison group. We modeled count and dichotomous outcomes using Poisson and logit models, respectively.
Participants: Cohort of adults (18-64) with T2DM, with an annual household income <$ 30,000, and who were continuously enrolled in an employer-sponsored UnitedHealthcare plan for at least 2 years between 2009 and 2014.
Interventions: The DHP reduces or eliminates out-of-pocket costs for disease management visits, diabetes-related medicines, and diabetes self-monitoring supplies. The DHP also provides access to diabetes-specific telephone case management as well as other online resources.
Main Measures: Number of disease management visits (N = 1732), any emergency room utilization (N = 1758), and any hospitalization (N = 1733), within the year.
Key Results: DID models predicting disease management visits suggested that DHP-exposed beneficiaries had 1.7 fewer in-person disease management visits per year (- 1.70 [95% CI: - 2.19, - 1.20], p < 0.001), on average, than comparison beneficiaries. Models for emergency room (0.00 [95% CI: - 0.06, 0.06], p = 0.966) and hospital utilization (- 0.03 [95% CI: - 0.08, - 0.01], p = 0.164) did not demonstrate statistically significant changes associated with DHP exposure.
Conclusions: While no relationship between DHP exposure and high-cost utilization was observed in the short term, fewer in-person disease management visits were observed. Future studies are needed to determine the clinical implications of these findings.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11606-022-07903-9 | DOI Listing |
Palliat Support Care
January 2025
Department of Family Medicine, Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI, USA.
Objectives: Advance care planning (ACP) supports communication and medical decision-making and is best conceptualized as part of the care planning continuum. Black older adults have lower ACP engagement and poorer quality of care in serious illness. Surrogates are essential to effective ACP but are rarely integrated in care planning.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFHeliyon
January 2025
Research Group of Urban Ageing, Faculty of Social Work & Education, The Hague University of Applied Sciences, Johanna Westerdijkplein 75, 2521 EN Den Haag, the Netherlands.
Numerous cities in the Russian Federation have joined the World Health Organization's (WHO) Global Network for Age-Friendly Cities and Communities since 2011. In order to do quantitative evaluations of the age-friendliness of cities, the Age-Friendly Cities and Communities Questionnaire (AFCCQ) was developed in the Netherlands. The purpose of this study was to translate and test the validity and reliability of the AFCCQ for use in the Russian Federation, and to study the views on the age-friendliness of the city of Kazan in the Republic of Tatarstan from an intergenerational perspective.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFIntroduction Total knee arthroplasty (TKA) is a widely accepted surgical intervention for patients with advanced knee osteoarthritis, aimed at reducing pain and improving functional mobility. Preoperative radiological evaluations, including assessments of joint space narrowing, osteophytes, varus/valgus deformities, and subchondral sclerosis, are essential for planning the surgery and predicting postoperative outcomes. Although extensive research has been conducted internationally, data focusing on populations in Saudi Arabia remain limited.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFTech Innov Patient Support Radiat Oncol
March 2025
Graduate School of Biomedical Sciences, Tokushima University, Tokushima, Tokushima 770-8503, Japan.
Purpose: This study aims to compare treatment plans created using RapidPlan and PlanIQ for twelve patients with prostate cancer, focusing on dose uniformity, dose reduction to organs at risk (OARs), plan complexity, and dose verification accuracy. The goal is to identify the tool that demonstrates superior performance in achieving uniform target dose distribution and reducing OAR dose, while ensuring accurate dose verification.
Methods: Dose uniformity in the planning target volume, excluding the rectum, and dose reduction in the OARs (the rectum and bladder) were assessed.
J Dent Sci
December 2024
Faculty of Dentistry, National University of Singapore, Singapore.
Oral and maxillofacial surgery (OMS) is a field that straddles knowledge and clinical experience from both medical and dental specialties. In the small island nation of Singapore, the rapidly and constantly changing needs of its diverse and aging population, as well as changes in the mindsets of both students and educators have led to many developments in the local OMS program. Tied to the only dental school in the country, the curriculum of the training program has kept up with the changes in the demographics and attitudes of the local patient pool, which comprises a multicultural population with both traditional and modern mindsets.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFEnter search terms and have AI summaries delivered each week - change queries or unsubscribe any time!